During the Neolithic Age, people changed from being hunters and gatherers to being food producers. We call this transformation the Neolithic revolution.

This brief introduction to the Neolithic Revolution is a very general introduction of an enormous event in human development. The advent of agriculture opened up an infinite number of new possibilities for humankind. In fact, it is the first step of prehistoric man's long journey to what we now define as civilization. Of course, there are still centuries to go before our modern era, and this is only a single step, but nonetheless, it is a step in the right direction.

A revolution is often defined as a pivotal social, economic, cultural or governmental change. In the case of the Neolithic Revolution, however, it is, as you will see, all of these. An altered geography leads to the possibility of agriculture which in turn elicits the appearance of permanent settlements. For society to progress, the people must not only organize themselves but also discover new technologies.

Now that you have a basic understanding of what the Neolithic Revolution is about, it is time to begin examining your specific portion of it.

1. Gather data from a variety of provided secondary documents. Taking notes is not necessarily required as you can refer back to the site.
2. While reading, you will mentally analyze the information for relevance and importance (reliability is not a factor here).

After the false start of the Allerod, the renewal of warmer conditions about 10 000 BP marked the beginning of a more or less continuous retreat of the ice sheets and readjustment of the vegetational zones. Forests began to spread from their isolated refuge areas to cover large parts of Eurasia once again. Although the rise in temperature was rapid [...] the spread of forest was limited by the rate at which individual species of trees could disperse. Pioneer species such as birch moved most rapidly to occupy newly opened habitats, followed by conifers and then by the various components of the mixed oak forest. This sequence was fairly rapid in the Mediterranean and oak woodland soon became widespread, but further north these stages of dispersal were more protracted. In consequence there was in temperate Europe a phase lasting for two to three thousand years with high temperatures when only the northern forest species (now characteristic of latitudes beyond 60 degrees north) were present.

This open woodland, which soon included extensive growths of hazel, supported large numbers of red deer, elk and pig. With the many morainic lakes in recently deglaciated areas, still extensive coastal plains with plentiful migratory waterfowl and warm-water fish and molluscs, it represented a highly favourable habitat for human occupation. While it no longer supported the large migratory herds of reindeer, which followed the tundra areas northwards, it sustained dispersed but semi-sedentary hunting and collection populations over wide areas, including some that had not previously been occupied....

In North Africa the onset of Postglacial conditions and the drowning of the coastal plain after 10 000 BP saw a general move inland to the bush-steppe zone, where the hartebeest (Alcelaphus) became the main source of food for the bearers of the Capsian culture. In the Sahara as a whole the wetter conditions offered rising lakes and areas of well-watered pastureland in the highland massifs that increasingly attracted population, though mainly after 6000 BC.

Physical environment of a city includes its location, its climate, and the availability of water and food. Cities have been founded in many kinds of environments, but their development has depended on certain favorable environmental features. All cities, for instance, must have enough drinking water. Early communities, which depended on farming, needed enough rainfall to grow crops. Good soil was also essential for growing crops, and nearness to other food--animals and edible plants--was helpful. Other favorable environmental features included a reasonably mild climate and a location near materials for making clothes and building shelters.

Early people found many favorable environmental features in river valleys with hot weather. Some chose to settle in the Tigris-Euphrates Valley of what is now Iraq and the Nile Valley of what is now Egypt....

The Ice Age ended about 10 000 BC. The glaciers began melting. The land was no longer frozen. People now learned how to grow food. They no longer had to chase wild animals across the lands. Once they learned to raise their own food, they could settle down. That change, from hunting to farming, made civilization possible.

The last Ice Age ended about 10 000 years ago. As the vast sheets of ice receded, the environment of many prehistoric people changed and greatly affected their way of life. In some areas, such as Europe, forests began to spread across the land. The people of these areas learned to hunt new species of animals and gather new varieties of plants from these forests. In other parts of the world, people began to experiment with methods of controlling their supply of food. This led to the beginning of farming.

The most recent ice age occurred mainly during the Pleistocene Epoch, which began about 2 million years ago and ended about 10 000 years ago. The term Ice Age usually refers to the Pleistocene Ice Age.

[...]

About 55 million years ago, during the Tertiary Period, the earth began to cool. It grew colder throughout the rest of the Tertiary Period. About 30 million years ago, glaciers started to form in Antarctica. These glaciers dramatically increased in size about 13 million years ago to form the Antarctic ice sheet. [...] Only about 2.4 million years ago did ice sheets begin to form on the northern continents.

[...]

In Europe, the Scandinavian Peninsula was the centre of glaciation [glacier formation]. Ice piled up about 3 000 metres thick, almost to Moscow. It also covered northern England, Denmark, and Germany. It spread over an area about half the size of the glaciation in North America.

[...]

At their height, the ice sheets turned so much water to ice that the level of the oceans dropped at least 90 metres. When the ice melted, water flowed back into the oceans and filled them to their present level.

[...]

The modern horse, camel, and elephant first appeared in the Ice Age. The horse and camel originated in North America. Then they crossed the Bering Strait to Asia....

When the icecaps pushed down from the north, they drove the animals southward. But, during interglacial periods [between glaciations], the animals could follow the melting ice northward....

During their greatest advance, glaciers spread over much of
North America, Europe and Asia. Mountain glaciers formed in
Africa, Australia, South America, and New Zealand.

The climate grew cooler in the late Cenozoic Era and led to the Ice Age, which is commonly dated between 2 million and 10 000 years ago. During the Ice Age, glaciers advanced and retreated several times over large areas of the earth....

Fertile Crescent is a crescent-shaped region is Asia. This historic region begins at the Mediterranean Sea, stretches between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, and ends at the Persian Gulf. [...] James H. Breasted, an American archaeologist, named the region the Fertile Crescent because these people and their successors created rich, irrigated farmlands. The Assyrians, Babylonians, Eblaites, Israelites, Mitannians, and Phoenicians also lived and ruled in the Fertile Crescent.

The earliest known farming took place along the great rivers of the Middle East. These lands include what are now the countries of Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Turkey. This area is called the Fertile Crescent. The Tigris and Euphrates rivers provided plenty of water for the land. The soil was rich. The land between the Tigris and Euphrates was called Mesopotamia. That name means land between two rivers.

Within the Fertile Crescent was the town of Jericho. It is one of the earliest known towns. By about 8 000 BC Jericho was probably a farming village.

People have lived in the area known as the Middle East for hundreds of thousands of years. During this period, small, relatively isolated groups hunted game and gathered wild fruits and vegetables. When the last Ice Age ended about 12 000 years ago, the world's climate began to become warmer. New plants and animals colonized areas which had before been too cold for them. These changes took a few thousand years, changing the lifestyle of the people of the time, and altering forever the way people would live in the future.

3. Fill in the gaps using educated guesses (if there are any).

Having read and analyzed the provided data, you may have discovered some gaps that are not covered by the information. If so, you will need to make educated guesses to "fill in the blanks." When you are done or if you found none, continue on to the next step.

4. Use the provided sources of information to construct your own viewpoint on the aspect of the Neolithic Period for which you are responsible. Using the word processor on your computer, you will then type up your interpretation of the data, in your own words, in a well-developed paragraph complete with a topic sentence. Co-operation with your partner is essential here.

The time has come for all your diligent research to pay off.

Note: Please follow the instructions as they are given. Read this paragraph before continuing on.

You and your partner will now discuss your interpretations of the data, agree on a single standpoint, and record it. Using a word processor on your computer, type up a well-developed paragraph presenting your viewpoint on your particular aspect of the Neolithic Revolution. This paragraph must have a topic sentence such as: "The radical changes in Earth's geography and climate following the last Ice Age are what made the Neolithic Revolution possible." Try to be creative with your viewpoint; it is hoped that every group will interpret the evidence in a different way. The length of the paragraph will obviously vary but try to stay within the range of 200 - 400 words. One person doing all the typing is perfectly fine providing that there is input from both members. As previously mentioned, co-operation is essential. You will probably be referring back to this page when writing, but write the paragraph in your own words.

Read through then follow:

• Open the Start Menu and find your desired word processor (Microsoft Word, Claris Works, etc.). Note that it may be under "Programs."
• You and your partner agree on a standpoint about the evidence and type it up in the form of a well-developed paragraph with topic sentence, in your own words (referring back to this page when necessary--be sure to keep the browser window open).
• Proof read your paragraph for grammatical faults, spelling errors, etc.
• When you have a final copy done, and are still in the word processor, hit the following keys:
  • Ctrl-A (to select everything) then
  • Ctrl-C (to copy it to the Clipboard)
• Print off a copy of your paragraph for each member of your group, both for evaluation and study purposes (File > Print).
• After retrieving your sheet from the printer, save the file on the computer under your name (File > Save As...) then continue to the next step, "Submit and Review."

5. Submit your paragraph to your peers to be read. This is where the technology really comes into play: You will post your paragraph on a message forum where others can read it and comment if they wish. You can do the same with other groups' paragraphs.

You must now have a final copy of your paragraph and are ready to go to the message board to submit it and read those the other groups have prepared. If you have never used a message board before: don't panic. There is nothing to them. Detailed instructions are at the message board. You may now enter.